Fresh off productions at Ontario’s Stratford Festival and a little place called Broadway, Langley singer and actor Kaylee Harwood has returned to the Lower Mainland.
Harwood will be featured in Rodgers & Hammerstein: Out of a Dream — a world premiere musical revue at the newly opened York Theatre on Commercial Drive — from Feb. 5 to 16.
A tribute to the legendary songwriting team, Out of a Dream, presented by Patrick Street Productions, will take audiences on a musical journey featuring songs from every show written by the prolific Broadway duo.
“With Out of a Dream we celebrate two masters who almost single-handedly created the golden era of musical theatre,” said Peter Jorgensen, Patrick Street Production’s co-artistic director, and creator and director of Out of a Dream.
“From their first collaboration on Oklahoma! to their final collaboration on The Sound of Music, there is an undeniable majesty to their creations.”
Including Harwood, the production’s cast features five of Vancouver’s most accomplished musical theatre artists. She is joined by Kazumi Evans, Warren Kimmel, Caitriona Murphy, and Sayer Roberts.
The ensemble will guide audiences on a nostalgic, dreamy journey through the Rodgers & Hammerstein songbook, visiting each and every musical penned by the duo, including Carousel, South Pacific, The King & I, Cinderella, and other favourites.
Taking the form of a revue, the production eschews strict narrative and instead thematically floats between songs and scenes in a whimsical tribute to the pair’s musical treasures.
Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960) were an influential and innovative American writing team responsible for some of the 20th century’s most celebrated musicals.
While each had achieved acclaim prior to their partnership, their greatest professional successes were to come from their collaboration. Between Oklahoma! in 1943 and The Sound of Music in 1959, the duo created 11 productions for which they received 34 Tony Awards, 15 Academy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and the Pulitzer Prize.
In Brief:
Patrick Street Productions presents Rodgers & Hammerstein: Out of a Dream
Date: Feb. 5 to 16; Tuesday to Saturday at 8 p.m. with matinees on Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m.
Preview: Feb. 5 at 8 p.m.
Opening Night: Feb. 6 at 8 p.m.
Admission: Prices begin at $19
Address: York Theatre 639 Commercial Dr., at Georgia Street.
Tickets: online at tickets.thecultch.com, or by phone at 604-251-1363.
